Gilbert O’Sullivan
With a brand new album in the pipeline, singer-songwriter Gilbert O’Sullivan (74) chats about his early days and his latest projects
The pop world T in 1970 was dominated by rock bands sporting long hair and flared jeans. But towards the end of the year there appeared an unusual-looking young man who wore a cloth cap atop his pudding bowl haircut, short baggy trousers, grey shirt, oldfashioned waistcoat and jacket, striped schoolboy tie and hobnail boots.
He sat at a piano singing a beautiful, yet sad song with evocative lyrics which told a story. His name was Gilbert O’Sullivan and the song, which he’d
“I like a quiet life where I can be with the people I love”
penned himself, was called Nothing Rhymed. It would be his first Top Ten hit in Britain and a hit all over Europe. “I’d been working at becoming successful since 1967,” recalls Gilbert, whose real name is Raymond.
“I signed to a record company but it wasn’t happening for me, which is the reason I adopted my image. I wanted to stand out. I was a massive Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton fan and wanted to recreate a look from the silent-movie era. At the suggestion of my manager, I also adopted the name Gilbert. I knew people would remember Gilbert O’Sullivan because of the famous Victorian, light-operatic duo Gilbert and Sullivan.”
In August 1971, Gilbert released his first album, Himself. In May 1972 Alone Again (Naturally) made its way to No. 1 in the American charts, where it remained for six consecutive weeks and eventually earned Gilbert his first gold disc.
By the time his hits Get Down, Clair and Ooh Wakka Doo Wakka Day stormed the charts, Gilbert had created a more contemporary look. How does he look back on those heady days of the early to mid Seventies?
“It was fantastic,” he replies. “Not from a fame
point of view or anything like that, though. I was never a party person and I’m still not. I like a quiet life where I can stay home with the people I love.”
And the people he loves the most are Aase, his Norwegian wife of 41 years, their two daughters and two grandchildren. Gilbert and Aase live in Jersey, where they have been since the mid Eighties. “I love it here,” he says. “The beaches are beautiful and there are no busy roads.”
A lawsuit over royalties blighted his career for a period in the late Seventies and early Eighties, but in 1982
he won the case. Since then, Gilbert has never stopped working and releasing albums every few years. Songwriting remains his passion. His 19th studio album, Gilbert O’Sullivan, released in 2018, entered the UK Album Chart at No. 20 – his first UK charting studio album for more than 40 years.
“I’m already to go with my next album once lockdown ends and a world tour is planned for 2022,” he says.
In February, Gilbert joined Gary Barlow on one of his virtual performance sessions with the Take That singer’s admiration for Gilbert clear to see. They sang Alone Again as a duet and gained millions of views. How does he look back on his success?
“Well, I was always determined it would happen,” he says. “I always believed in myself and didn’t rely on anyone else or their opinions to help get me through.
“You have to rely on yourself. I would have just continued until I succeeded.”